Advice: Adult Beginner Skills Progress

[jetsfan23]

Hi folks,

I am in my fourth year playing on a team and want to start practicing more. I tend to practice solo as I can't really afford to do learn to play classes, but have done them off and on for about 5 years.

I have been looking at the USA skill development manual and was going to use the 10 U practice plans and skill checklist as kind of a bench mark for this year.

How do other people plan their technical skills training.

Ian

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[Rookie109]

Hey, a fellow Manitoban and probably Winnipeger! I'm in my 3rd season playing beer league hockey and might be able to give some advice. I never looked at any manuals at all really. I don't know your background in all things hockey, but perhaps I can tell you about mine so you can compare.

I played all sorts of sports growing up, but my parents would not let me play hockey. I played street, floor, and a little ball hockey as a kid but stopped for many years. Later I started playing sponge hockey in about 2009, then bought a pair of skates in about 2011 and just started going to outdoor rinks for some shiny. Eventually I finally put together a team in 2014 and haven't look back since. I have played all the way since than, even in summer. The best thing I did was to take adult power skating at Canlan level 1 and 2 this past summer. When you can afford to do so, I highly suggest it - it'll be a game changer.

Back to suggestions about skills. A big thing I've also done is to read and watch tons of how to hockey videos online. The guy who makes them (Jeremy) is amazing with breaking things down. http://howtohockey.com/

Aside from that, the best thing you can also do is to play in as many pickup games as you can. Experience is massive when it comes to getting better. The more people you meet, the more of these things you'll get invited to. When I go, I am always asking for suggestions or help. When someone gives me advice without me asking, I always try to do what they say or ask if I don't understand.

Sometimes I'll also go to a rink solo at stick and puck or outdoors in the winter and practice all sorts of drills from those how to hockey drills. One thing I can say is that skating is the most important skill to get good at first. I did this in reverse since I could shoot and pass fairly well, it was my skating that I am still working on.

Another thing that will help is to watch lots of NHL games on TV, just watching sometimes will give you ideas or help you see the game from a distance.

Not exactly what you're asking for, but perhaps it'll help.

Ian[/QUOTE]

 

[jetsfan23]

Sounds awesome man. What team do you play for? I play for the Johnny Come Lately's in Div E group D. I hope to do some pickups maybe once in a while at my local community centre. I play hockey only in winter because I play a lot of golf in summer. That much said I plan on cranking it up for 17-18.

 

[puckpilot]

Been playing most of my life, but a few years ago, I ran into health issues and literally had to relearn how to skate, shoot, and stickhandle.

What I did was start right from the very basics and worked my way back up. I watched a lot of youtube videos. The best drills I found for skating came from this channel called iTrainHockey.

The instructor shows you the logical progressions of skills that take you from the basics all the way to some of the more advanced stuff. Helped me a lot.

Another channel I watched was PavelBarber. Guy is an amazing stickhandler and I go a lot of drills from him.

For me coming back from my health problems gave me some nice prospective on doing drills and getting better. One of the key aspects that I don't think gets emphasised enough is strength.

With skating, you have to be strong enough to perform some of the drills. What I mean by that is each step in a progression is in part about building enough strength to be able to start trying to do the next drill in the progression.

For example hockey stops. Many try to go from 0 to 100 on this--or rather 100 to O--and IMHO it often just leads to them learning to do it wrong.

It's a logical progression. You learn the snowplow stop. You learn the t-stop. Once you've mastered those you move on to trying the hockey stop, witch is the combining of the the snowplow and the t-stop.

I see a lot of people learn the snowplow and then don't bother with the t-stop. Then they wonder why they can't use both edges when they try to hockey stop.

Again, keep in mind it's in part about building strength, and IMHO you'll understand and get more out of drills.

 

[American in Paris]

Skating one of the circles while handling the puck can do wonders for your game. Forwards, backwards, while transitioning... just keep handling the puck. You should be continuously crossing over as you do it. As you improve, you'll be able to match the cadence of your stickhandling to your skate movements.

You can also skate a 4-leaf clover pattern in the circle with the puck. That will help with your tight turns. Make sure to go both directions.

If you have a partner to practice with, skate the circle while touch passing. Forwards, then backwards. Again, always be crossing over.

If you do those three things for 15-20 minutes every time you go on the ice, you'll be at a new level within 12 months.